How to get the EXIF data from a file using C#?

Question

I would like to write a small program in C# which goes through my jpeg photos and, for example, sorts them into dated folders (using MY dating conventions, dammit...). Does anyone know a relatively easy way to get at the EXIF data such as Date And Time or Exposure programatically? Thanks!

Answer 1

Use the MetadataExtractor NuGet package. It's free, cross-platform, and reads EXIF from JPEGs (plus RAW, HEIC, PNG, and more) without any Windows-only dependencies.

dotnet add package MetadataExtractor

Reading date taken and exposure, then moving the file:

csharp

using MetadataExtractor;

using MetadataExtractor.Formats.Exif;

foreach (var path in System.IO.Directory.GetFiles(@"C:\Photos\Inbox", "*.jpg"))

{

var exif = ImageMetadataReader.ReadMetadata(path)

.OfType<ExifSubIfdDirectory>().FirstOrDefault();

DateTime taken = exif != null && exif.TryGetDateTime(ExifDirectoryBase.TagDateTimeOriginal, out var dt)

? dt

: File.GetLastWriteTime(path); // fallback for files with no EXIF date

string exposure = exif?.GetDescription(ExifDirectoryBase.TagExposureTime); // e.g. "1/250 sec"

string folder = Path.Combine(@"C:\Photos\Sorted", taken.ToString("yyyy-MM-dd")); // your convention here

System.IO.Directory.CreateDirectory(folder);

File.Move(path, Path.Combine(folder, Path.GetFileName(path)));

}

A few things worth knowing:

1. Use DateTimeOriginal, not DateTime. TagDateTimeOriginal is when the shutter fired. The plain DateTime tag (in IFD0) often gets overwritten when you edit the file.
2. No time zone. EXIF dates are camera local time, with no offset. If your camera clock was wrong or you traveled, you'll see it here.
3. Other useful tags in the same directory: TagFNumber, TagIsoEquivalent, TagFocalLength. Camera make and model live in ExifIfd0Directory.
4. Name collisions. Two cameras can both produce IMG_0001.jpg on the same day, so check File.Exists before moving or you'll get an exception.

The taken.ToString(...) line is where your dating convention goes.